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Oklahoma State football: Cowboy cornerbacks were a weak spot in 2012

OSU's staff is hoping to shore up its defense before the Heart of Dallas Bowl against Purdue.

By Gina Mizell •
Published: December 22, 2012

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STILLWATER — Mike Gundy was recently asked — perhaps in a somewhat sugarcoated way — if cornerback play was the most “surprising” development for Oklahoma State this season.

OSU / COLLEGE FOOTBALL: OSU's Brodrick Brown talks to the media after football practice at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater, Okla., Friday, Dec. 14, 2012. Photo by Nate Billings, The Oklahoman

The Cowboy coach didn't give a sugarcoated response.

“You're being nice,” Gundy said. “We haven't played very good at that position.”

Before the season, Gundy touted the 2012 defense as the best he's had since he became OSU's head coach. That was based on the hope that the front seven, with an experienced group of linebackers and the addition of Calvin Barnett up front, would improve. The given, it seemed, would be that the back end, where starting corners Brodrick Brown and Justin Gilbert were sure to build on a 2011 season that saw them combine for 10 interceptions and plenty of big plays on a takeaway-heavy defense.

Instead, that position was the defense's biggest weakness.

Neither Brown nor Gilbert snagged an interception in the regular season. Too many of their 114 combined tackles came after allowing a first-down catch. And they were a major component of an OSU pass defense that ranked 112th out of 120 teams in the nation, giving up more than 285 yards per game.

“We defended deep balls much better (as the season went along), but we weren't challenging enough on those underneath throws,” Gundy said. “That's a fact. That's the way it is.”

Gundy's referring to the infamous cushion to catch the ball the cornerbacks allowed the receivers, which became a particularly alarming development during the latter part of the season. It was most evident against Oklahoma, when Landry Jones and the Sooner air attack rolled to 512 passing yards by living off the hitch route, rather than throwing the ball down the field.

And it's tough to make an impact play — an interception, a pass break-up — when a player is nowhere near the football.

Defensive coordinator Bill Young said the bigger cushion wasn't the result of any philosophy change following early season struggles to stop the deep ball. He always tries to mix up coverages between man and zone, and a defensive back's alignment depends on the specific look and the opposing receiver. For example, in a cover four defense, the cornerback typically lines up one yard inside the sideline and seven yards off the line of scrimmage.

The overall goal is, of course, to keep the catch in front of the secondary. The goal is not to give up 10-yard pass after 10-yard pass as the opposing offense marches toward the end zone.